Survivors of conversion practices still want to be able to be part of their religion

Sunday, 19 February 2023

One year since the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Act came into force in Aotearoa, ongoing work is required to reach faith-based and different cultural communities to help the most vulnerable.

Survivors of conversion practices say they still want to be able to take part in their religion, despite faith-based communities being the most common setting for the now banned ‘therapy’.

A year since the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Act came into force in Aotearoa on Saturday, 29 inquiries have been made to the Human Rights Commission’s service set up to hear complaints.

Complaints came from a diverse group of people across the country; most who had experienced conversion practices in faith-based settings. But many voiced their desire to stay a part of their faith-based communities, the commission’s conversion practices response service manager Matt Langworthy said.

One survivor – a Māori man who was part of a Catholic community, who made a complaint to the Commission, and who Stuff agreed not to name, said his experience of conversion therapy spanned over years after he was pressured to leave his relationship with a man.

* Parliament passes law banning conversion therapy with near unanimity

Rhys Walker was kicked out of his church for coming out as gay, and has now joined with church elder, Andy Hickman, an Anglican pastor and an advocate of accepting LGBT+ people for who they are. (First published September 11, 2021)

* A parent's suggestion of conversion therapy doubles risk of suicide, self harm, says researcher

“They said you can either have God or be gay, but not both,” he told the commission.

“It made me so angry, I didn’t understand how my desires could be intrinsically disordered. But I also saw no other options.”

Matt Langworthy, manager of the Human Right Commission’s conversion practices response service and survivor of conversion therapy says 29 inquiries have been made to the complaints service in the last year.

The man described the “huge amount of courage” that was required to step away from the harmful practice.

”After all that, I never felt any change at all. I gave God every opportunity, but nothing.

Andre Afamasaga, a survivor and group manager at HRC says it’s crucial to engage cultural and community leaders to help tackle conversion practices.

”It creates so much damage, in every part of your life, but somehow you still feel stuck in it.”

Today, he said he was part of a faith community run by a queer couple where he had made good friendships.

Indian Origin Pride New Zealand is creating a space for Indian rainbow people to celebrate both their cultural heritage and rainbow identity.

Langworthy, who was a survivor of 20 years of conversion practices, said there were many instances where survivors spoke of wanting to remain a part of their faith communities and felt it was possible.

“We’re taking their (survivors’) lead in this work to find common ground between communities, and for us, the one-year anniversary is a chance for us to draw attention to that and celebrate the hopeful progress.”

Education and awareness around conversion therapy was a major focus of the complaints service team since it was set up last August, while it had concerns i solation and shame might be keeping the most vulnerable from asking for the help.

Chief Human Rights Commissioner Paul Hunt says sustained effort is required to continue to reach those most vulnerable to conversion practices.

“As long as people feel pressure to change or suppress their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression there will always be a demand for conversion practices.”

The team had its first meeting with a group of faith leaders to do training and awareness building around conversion practices and the harm it caused.

“What’s most effective, we’ve found, in finding common ground with faith groups is sharing the personal stories of survivors – that’s when the understanding and awareness really seems to grow.”

It also planned to work with trainers of youth workers, take part in a human rights conference in Sydney, and run a session with pastors at the Awaken Conference in Christchurch in March.

Indian Origin Pride New Zealand co-founder Arrun Soma said anecdotally he had heard of Indian rainbow people experiencing conversion practices – some of which were physically violent.

“The Indian community, is one of those that needs to grapple with conservative, traditional cultures and religion and it needs to protect those most vulnerable in the community,” Soma said.

It was important for Indian people to celebrate both their rainbow and cultural identity.

While many in the Indian community often struggled to talk about “taboo subjects” – one of which was rainbow issues, a big part of protecting those who were vulnerable was about visibility and peer to peer support, he said.

“It all starts with community and inside households.”

Māori and Pasifika communities also made it clear that family connections were a core part of their wellbeing and they would continue to be, as well as their faith connections.

Andre Afamasaga, a survivor and group manager at HRC said it was crucial to engage cultural and community leaders.

Te Amokapua Chief Human Rights Commissioner Paul Hunt said it would take sustained effort to reach those behind significant and complex barriers.

Some progress had been made but public education and outreach programmes were crucial to preventing any further harm caused by conversion practices, he said.